Philatelic Collections

Special Collections’ philatelic holdings include three individual postage stamp collections. These are: the William J. Waldron, Jr., Collection of Postage Stamps; the Wolf Collection of Irish Postage Stamps; and the Oscar Paul Larsen, Jr., Philatelic Collection. Taken together, these total some 200 volumes of stamps, first day covers, and other philatelic material. Most stamp-issuing countries are well represented, with some emphasis on Western, Central, and Southern Europe.

Many of the department’s manuscript collections include philatelic material, typically in the form of letter sheets, envelopes, postal cards, or postcards sent through the mails. Such items are always retained with the manuscript collection of which they form a part.